al-Amr bil Ma'roof (Enjoy what is good) and al-Nahi ani'l Munkar (Forbid what is wrong)

The Prophet of Islam informed the Muslims that he had been sent to teach them moral behaviour. One of his teachings was that people should encourage each other to do good, and discourage and prevent one another from doing bad or evil things.

In this respect, Muslims attempt to encourage others to do good works and behave justly and in line with Islamic ethics and law. They also attempt to discourage others from doing evil deeds, usually by talking to them or showing displeasure when someone does something wrong.

In all instances, Muslims have been commanded to be sensitive and careful when dealing with others and at no time are they allowed to use hurtful language or violence.

The aim of making these duties compulsory is to improve the standing of society and foster better interaction and behaviour in Muslim communities. It also places responsibility on every Muslim to care about society and help to better it, rather than leaving it to a few.

Among the commands of Islam, some are to promote the ethical code and behaviour of Muslims.

In this way, if each Muslim conforms to a minimum standard of ethical behaviour and assists and encourages their fellow Muslims to do so as well, there will be a general and consensual positive level of goodwill in society. The Qur’an describes this society as that which will be successful:

“And let there be [arising] from you a nation inviting to [all that is] good, enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong, and those will be the successful” [3:104].

The reference to enjoining what is right, or commanding what is good, is the first half of implementing this model of an ethical society. Here a Muslim is obligated to command other Muslims to do good, be it in worship or conduct. For example, this could be done by telling people not to forget to pay Zakat al-fitrah at the end of Ramadhan, or by reminding them to be kind to their neighbours.

Forbidding what is wrong or evil is the second half of this command, which in most cases is more difficult. This usually involves telling someone not to do something, or to stop doing it, if it is forbidden by law or if it is an act that is damaging to the person or the community. This could be for example if someone is slandering another person, or if someone openly breaks their fast without excuse in the month of Ramadhan.

Several conditions are attached when attempting to implement the above, including knowing the religious laws and understanding the context of what someone is or isn’t doing before commanding or forbidding them. Also, the person being told what is good and what is evil should be capable of understanding and listening and obeying, if not, then your words and actions will have no effect. If the person insists on doing, or not doing something, then again they should be left alone and not instructed otherwise. Finally, if commanding good to them or forbidding them from evil may provoke a dangerous reaction then it is not obligatory to do so.

There are three levels which one can employ in ascending order when trying to command people to do good or to forbid them from doing evil.

1. The first is the silent method, displaying approval for someone doing good or showing disapproval when someone does something bad. This is mostly successful when dealing with children or family members and is the easiest method.

2. The second is the spoken method, telling someone what they should and should not be doing. This requires rather more care and sensitivity when dealing with someone, and at no time should insulting or distasteful words be used.

3. The third which is only for the most extreme and damaging cases, when there could be disturbance in the community as a result of non-action, is the physical intervention. This could be achieved through denying someone access to a place or an item that they could use to do evil.

In all these methods, the primary concern is the welfare of the individual and wider society.